The Hunt
by NewClassic100
Summary: Ron left the trio during the hunt for Horcruxes, so it's only Harry and Hermione now. As they go to different places, Hermione can't shake off the feeling that she is being watched... (In later chapters mature content and violence) Read and review!
1. Chapter 1

**(Authors note: Hi everyone! I hope you will enjoy this story! I don't own any of the characters and the dialogue at the end belongs to Warner Bros. Please review!)**

She wakes up shivering from the cold and doesn't recognize her surroundings immediately. It has been 6 months since they fled from the wedding and started camping in the woods. They only had the medallion and were still trying to find out how to destroy the Horcrux. They filled their days with seeking for non-poisoned fruits and thinking of what the Horcruxes could be and where to find them. Even though those were small tasks, they were tiring her out and she could see the fatigue on Ron and Harry as well. They just wanted this war to be over, but they were the only ones who could stop it.

She sees Ron sleeping in the bunk beside her and the shadow of Harry in front of the tent. Hermione gets out of bed, grabs some berries they picked yesterday morning and settles down next to Harry.

"Here." she says and she hands him some of the berries.

"Thanks." he says and he rolls them between his fingers.

"Have you had any sleep?" she asks while looking at the bags under his eyes.

"Yeah." he says and she can tell he is lying, but she doesn't say anything about it. He is having it hard enough as it is.

She thinks about her classmates and most of her friends who are at Hogwarts right now, in who knows what circumstances. She thinks about Ginny, Luna and Neville who only have each other now and she feels a sting of guiltiness. She is probably saver than them in these woods and she didn't even bother to bring them safety.

She hears Ron shuffling out of his bed but he doesn't come to sit with them.

"Ron?" she says while peeking through the tent opening. "I have some berries for you."

"I don't like berries." she hears him mumbling and she sighs.

"Let him." Harry sighs as well. "Where are we going to apparate to today?"

She starts thinking about camping holidays with her parents and those memories pain her. She wonders where in Australia they are and hopes that if she dies in this war, they will be fine. And if they win this war, she hopes she will find them and get their memory back.

"I honestly don't know Harry, the Death Eaters must know we are hiding in woods or somewhat, since You-Know-Who already knows we are hunting for his Horcruxes. But there isn't really another option than hiding in the woods."

"Maybe we could go back to the Forest of Dean, it's so big it should take 2 weeks to have seen every tree."

Hermione nods in agreement and gets inside the tent again, searching for Ron and getting something to eat for him.

Ron is laying on the couch with his arm still in the bandage.

"You have to eat something, Ron. You'll starve." she says and she gives him pieces of squirrel.

"Is that the only thing you care about? If I will starve?" he spits at her.

"It is one thing I care about, Ron, I care more than that and you know tha-" she gets interrupted by Ron.

"I can see you two, Hermione," he mocks her, "Doing stuff when I'm still sleeping, discussing hiding places, hunting for food and even discussing how to catch Horcruxes when I'm not there. I know it and I'm sick of it."

"But Ron, we-" she gets interrupted again, this time by Harry who got inside the tent as well.

"Whats wrong?" Harry asks.

"Wrong? Nothing's wrong. Not according to you, anyway." Ron says and looks at Hermione.

"Look, if you've got something to say, don't be shy. Spit it out." Harry says calmly.

"Allright, I'll spit it out. But don't expect me to be grateful because there's another damn thing we've got to find." "I thought you knew what you signed up for," Harry says and Hermione looks restless between the two boys.

"Yeah, I thought I did too." Ron says evilly and looks at them both.

"Well then, I'm sorry, but I don't quite understand. What part of this, isn't living up to your expectations? Did you think we were gonna be staying at a hotel? Finding a Horcrux every other day? That you'd be back by Christmas?" Harry stands closer to Ron.

"I just thought, that after all this time, we would've achieved something. I thought you knew what you were doing. I thought Dumbledore would've told you something worthwile. I thought you had a plan." Ron cuts in and Hermione went to stand next to Harry.

"I told you everything that Dumbledore told me! In case you haven't noticed we have found a Horcrux already." Harry starts to lose his temper now.

"Yeah, and we're as close to getting rid of it as we are to finding the rest of them. Aren't we." Ron says angrily.

Hermione walks up to Ron and tries to take the medallion from his neck. "Ron, please, take- Take the Horcrux off, you wouldn't be saying any of this if you hadn't been wearing it all night." Ron shrugs her away and focuses on Harry again.

"Want to know why I listen to that radio? To make sure, I don't hear Ginny's name, or Fred, or George, or mom."

Harry cuts in. "You think I'm not listening? You think I don't know how this feels?" Harry yells at him.

"No, you don't know how it feels! Your parents are dead! You have no family!" Ron yells and Harry steps forward and starts pushing Ron.

"Stop! Stop!" Hermione yells and grabs a hold of Harry.

"Go! Go!" Harry yells. "Go then!"

"Fine." Ron says and he takes off the locket. He grabs a bag with his stuff and stands before the opening of the tent again. He looks at Hermione. "Are you coming with me or are you staying with him?"

"Ron, I-" Hermione says hopelessly. "You know I can't leave now."

"Fine." he says and he stomps out of the tent.

Hermione and Harry look at each other and sit down on one of the beds. Now there are only 2 of them.


	2. Chapter 2

**(A/N: I quickly wrote another chapter, because I like the story so much! Please review what you think! Again, I don't own anything. Enjoy!)**

Chapter 2

Draco walks in front of his parents trough the dark hallways of Malfoy Manor, also known as the headquarters of the Dark Lord. He can hear the clicking of his mothers heels and his dad's shoes. They are both completely silent and anxious about what the Dark Lord will say to has set up a meeting about the Horcruxes and expects everyone to come. He said he has a special task for the youngest Malfoy. Draco was glad he could do something in this war, because the Dark Lord had never spoken to him since his failed mission. Every day his mark was burning, a sign that he was getting stronger by the day.

He opened the grand doors of the meeting room and immediately met eyes with Voldemort himself. He keeps a poker-face and sits down next to his aunt Bellatrix. Lucius closes the door silently and then sits next to his wife. It is silent for a minute and then Voldemort starts to speak.

"I'm glad you all came." he says in a calm voice and looks around. Everyone nods at him. "3 days ago, I explained to you all what my Horcruxes are and what they do. But yesterday evening, Severus Snape told me about a Horcrux I did not know of." he says and his eyes trail off of to Snape.

"Please tell them yourself, Severus." he says and everyone looks at Snape.

"It seems," he starts, "that the Dark Lord created an Horcrux inside the body of Harry Potter on the night Harry Potter survived. We are not sure of this, but it would explain the connection between the two minds."

Voldemort interrupts him. "So, we created a mission. This one will be for the youngest Malfoy, Draco." he point his finger at him and a rush of adrenaline goes trough Draco's body. "He doesn't have to find Harry Potter, but he must find his companion; Hermione Granger."

"Why does he have to find her?" Bellatrix interrupts and then bows her head towards Voldemort.

"The Mudblood seems to have a brain, Albus Dumbledore probably has told her most about it, maybe even more than Potter. The Mudblood will also do good as bait to catch Potter when we have all the information we need."

"But he can't do that!" someone yells at the table.

Draco gulps and a gasp goes trough the meeting room. He can hear several whispers of disapproval and he raises his chin higher. He can hunt down Mudblood Granger.

"My Lord, what will I have to do, once I find her?" he asks in gentle voice, trying not to let it quiver. He can her several snickers and chuckles but Voldemort silents them with a hand gesture.

"You will torture her, until she reveals the information about Harry Potter being a Horcrux." he states simply. Draco gulps at his words but doesn't let his fear show.

"If you fail this mission again, you will be set out, together with your family." he can hear his parents gasp softly, but by this comment he is even more determined to bring his family honour back. He can see some challenging looks from people at the the table, but he won't let it get to him.

"You can all leave now." he says and waves them away.

Chairs start shuffling and the sound of barely hearable whispers fill the room. He is the first at the door and he opens it. His parents follow him again to their living quarters and he dismisses them when they want to talk about it with him. He walks to his bedroom and orders a house-elf to bring him tea.

He sips his tea and starts walking around his bedroom, wondering where Granger and her gang could be hiding. They already inspected the different safe houses in their search for Potter, but they weren't there. Everybody suspects them to be in the woods or at a farm. They are probably moving around as well and not staying at the same place for a long time.

He sits down on the bed and rubs his temples. Maybe they don't know of the Taboo on Voldemort's name and he can catch them with that. But that will probably mean the Snatchers will catch them first and he doesn't want them to have the satisfaction of catching Granger and Potter. He will have to seek them himself, or be earlier than the Snatchers. Both tasks that seem impossible.

He searches his memory for the face of Granger again and it scares him how well he can remember her face. Bushy hair and brown eyes. An arrogant smirk playing on her features all the time, acting like she is better than everyone. He shudders. He hates her so fucking much.

Hermione and Harry still sit in the tent on the same spot, an hour after Ron left.

"He'll die sooner or later without us." Harry sighs and Hermione gulps. "If he doesn't get attacked, he'll die because of the cold for sure."

Hermione nods and listens to the radio Ron left behind.

"What are we gonna do without him, Harry." she asks, looking up to him.

"We will go on with out hunt for Horcruxes, we are not giving up because of him, Hermione. We still must end this war." he says and gets up. "I'm going to fish by the lake." he states and Hermione nods.

Hermione changes the radio channel and a music channel is on. She chuckles. Even in times of war, there are still people around who like to enjoy listening to music. She recognizes the song and ti her surprise it's a Muggle one. She hums along and sways her upper body to it. For the first time in 6 months, she feels somewhat happy. But when the song ends, the reminder of Ron and war sneakes into her mind and she feels sad again,

Harry comes in with fresh salmon he caught with his wand and she makes a fire to roast it.

After a while, when they're both laying in bed and Harry took Ron's bunk, he whispers, "We'll be allright Hermione. As long as we have eachother we can do this."

Hermione nods at her best friend in the dark.

As long as we have eachother.


	3. Chapter 3

2 months pass and Ron still didn't come back. The snow was now thick on the ground and the lake is layered with a thick blanket of ice. She didn't know what day it was, or month. The war could be won already and they wouldn't know it. Potterwatch hadn't been live for 3 weeks now and she was worried. Harry decided he wanted to find the sword of Gryffindor in Godric's Hallow. The place where Godric Gryffindor was born, and his parents died. She offered to drink a Polyjuice Potion, but he refused.

"We will bring the Invisibility Cloak, they won't expect me to go there, Mione." he had said and she nodded. She could understand that he wanted to go as himself.

They packed everything and prepared for worst case scenarios. They both crawled under the Invisibility Cloak and Hermione didn't even bother anymore to leave a sign for Ron. He won't come back.

Less snow had fallen in Godric's Hollow, but enough to leave a trail of footsteps. Hermione walked backwards and erased their footsteps. They walked towards a graveyard and she heard Harry breathe out.

"I want to see them." he whispers and I lay a hand on his shoulder.

"I'll go with you." she whispers back and to her surpirise he takes off the Cloak. "Harry, what are you-"

"I need to see them as myself, the Death Eaters don't suspect I'm here anyway." he whispers and he walks into the graveyard.

She wipes snow off graves and after 15 minutes she can see Harry standing still, a sign he found them. She walks towards him and lays her head on his shoulder as she reads the graves of Lily and James.

"I think it's Christmas Eve, Harry." she whispers as she can hear the choir singing in the church in the distance.

He nods at the church and sighs.

Suddenly, she feels eyes prickling in her back. She turns her head gently,but she can't see anyone.

"Harry, I feel like someone is watching us. We should hide under the Cloak and apparate to the forest."

Harry watches around him and he nods. "Yeah, we should go." he whispers and puts the Cloak around them.

They apparate back to the Forest of Dean and set up the tent again. They don't say anything to each other but the silence is comforting. The thought that it's Christmas Eve brings her peace and she crawls in her bed. The feeling that she is being watched still doesn't disappear when Harry is snoring next to her. She looks at the tent walls to see if there are any shadows, but only the shadow of a tree. She sighs and falls to sleep eventually.

The next day she wakes up and she sees Harry sitting on his bunk. "We haven't even searched for the sword, Mione." he sighs.

"I felt like someone was watching me." she whispers harshly.

"But there wasn't!" he whispers back and Hermione gets up.

"I'm outside." she says and grabs a book and leaves her wand in the tent. She decides to read against the tree she saw yesterday, but when she walks to the side of the tent, there is no tree at all.

She gasps in shock and then a hand clasps over her mouth from behind. "Goodmorning, Granger." a husky voice whispers in her ear.

She shudders as she recognizes the voice in her ear. She gets turned around and she meets the eyes of Draco Malfoy. She wants to grab her wand, but she left it in the tent. She tries to kick and scream, but he puts a silencing charm on her. His hand leaves her mouth and he stuns her. "You're coming with me, Mudblood." he spits in her face. She takes one last glance to the tent and hopes Harry won't come out,

But he does.

He grabs his wand but is too late. Malfoy throws him backwards with a spell and he laughs so maniacally that it echoes for a minute in her head.

"Searching this, Potter?!" he yells at him holds up the locket. He laughs again before he apparates her to Malfoy Manor. All Hermione can do is trying not to look too scared.

But she is.

He holds her in a death grip when he opens the doors of Malfoy Manor. The first one he meets is his aunt Bellatrix. She stutters and points at the Mudblood.

"Is tha- Is that-" she whispers harshly.

I nod at her and can't help but smirk.

Bellatrix screams in joy and everyone comes in the hallway to see what is going on.

"Crucio!" she screams and Granger writhes on the ground.

"Why is she not screaming in pain?" Bellatrix screams. "Put her off Silencio and un-stun her!"

Draco nods quickly and does as she says.

"Crucio!" she screams again and this time an icy, shrill scream comes out of Granger.

Bellatrix laughs even more now and suddenly Snape comes into the hallway.

"Bellatrix, it's enough now. She is Malfoy's prisoner." he says calmly and puts Granger on her feet suddenly.

"Maybe she should come with me-" Snape tries and looks worried but he grabs Granger out of is grip.

"No! She is mine like you said!" he yells and aggresively takes Granger with him to the cells.

"If you dare try to escape, you're dead. Understood?" he spits at her.

Granger spits in his face as an answer. He wipes his face with his sleeve and slaps her across the face.

She turns her face towards him again, not afraid. "Muggle." she whispers and gives a terrifying smirk.

He knows she is challenging him and he just pushes her into the cell. "See who's laughing now, Mudblood." he says as he magically seals the door behind him and casts a Lumos. He grabs the locket he took off her neck and lets it dangle in front of her face.

"You probably know what this is, don't you Mudblood." he sneers and she doesn't give an answer. "I take that as a yes, since you stole it."

"Why are you asking it then." she sneers back.

"Quiet!" he screams and casts a Crucio on her. He feels the adrenaline in his body because of it. It feels good to finally set her in her place.

"Do you know what Horcruxes are or not?" he yells at her with his wand ready to cast another.

She nods at him and he smirks. The Mudblood finally keeps quiet.

"Care to tell me?" he says impatiently at her and Granger clears her soar throat.

"What will I get in return?" she asks challening.

He is shocked by this, but his face turns angry after a few seconds.

"You have nothing to want, Granger." he says and he folds his arms in front of him.

"Then you can Crucio me all you want, Malfoy, but I won't tell anything until I get something in return." she says and she turns her back on me.

He sighs and he tries to keep his anger in. "You'll learn." he says and he steps out of the cell. He seals the door with a spell and turns off the light.

He walks upstairs to his bedroom and falls back on his bed. He hasn't slept in here for a week. He couldn't get Granger alone and kidnapping her with Potter right next to her didn't seem like a good idea.

He could hear her breathing last night. Soft sighs against her pillow. It reminded him of Pansy sleeping next to him last year. He wanted to kidnap her last night, but when he saw that Potter was sleeping right next to her, he decided to wait for the morning and hope she would come out on her own. And she did.

Stealing the locket back wasn't even in his plan, but when he saw it laying on the little table beside her bed, he didn't have to think twice. Potter didn't even have one Horcrux now, besides himself. To his surprise, he hadn't seen Weaselbee in the tent. He was probably dead, because the Snatchers don't have him and we don't have him either. He snickers at this. Poor Mudblood lost her icky boyfriend.

Snape comes into his room without knocking. "Well done, Draco." he says calmly. "How does she respond to the questions you ask her?" he sits next to him in a chair.

"She wants something in return." he sighs and shakes his head.

"Typical." Snape says and he is quiet for a minute. "Give her passion."

"Passion? I'm not gonna fuck with that." he sneers and he holds his head in his hands.

"I didn't say you have to fuck her Draco, but give her what she missed these last months. She'll break, trust my words." Snape smirks, gets up and leaves the room.

Draco stares into distance while he's thinking about Snape's idea.

Passion? Granger wouldn't let him near her even if he would beg for it. He shakes the thought out of his head and starts washing his hands.

Her blood streams into the sink.


	4. Chapter 4

**(A/N: Not my best, but please review!)**

Hermione wakes up with loud banging on her door and she sits upright quickly, prepared for anything. The door opens and it reveals Professor Snape with a food tray in his hands. He comes in and sets in front of her and closes the door behind him.

He casts a Muffliato around them and starts speaking. "Granger, this needs to be fast and quick. Understood?" he says sternly.

Hermione nods but doesn't know what is going to happen.

"I work as a spy for the Order, I will try to get you out of here, but you need to give false information about the Horcruxes okay? You have to tell that Harry will die, together with his Horcrux inside him. But you can only give him that information when he has tortured you for a long time, only then it will look believable. That's the only way we will win this war." he whispers and she nods again.

"You need to break Malfoy in any way you can do as well. Make him go mad for you, but don't fall for him. He will try to seduce you, pretend as if you fall for him. He is the right hand of the Dark Lord since he got you. Make sure you get under his skin and search everything trough when you're in personal places." she nods.

"Understood." she whispers and he leaves quickly.

Hermione eats her food gently, not eating everything immediately. Merlin knows how long she will have to do with this tray of food.

How the hell is going to make Draco fall for her. He won't even touch her, let alone kiss her. She shivered at the thought and wants to slam her head against the wall for not bringing her wand with her when she went outside. "Constant vigilance." Moody had said.

She closes her eyes and wants her mind to leave the room and this war. Her bottom lip quivers and she allows one tear to fall off her cheek. She sniffs and looks up to the ceiling. 'I will die here for sure.' she thinks and her fear sets in again. Her body starts to shake with panic, but she wants to be strong.

She hears footsteps in the hallway and she sits upright immediately, that must be Malfoy. She wipes her tears away and is ready to be challenged in any way. The door opens gently and Malfoy steps in, turning on the dim light in her cell.

"So Granger, did you fresh up your mind a bit? Can you remember what Horcruxes are?" he says, mocking her.

"You still didn't tell me what I will get in return." she says, holding out her statement and looking him dead in the eye.

"Like it matters, I will get it out of you anyway." he sneers quickly, getting nervous by her stare and he moves to grab his wand.

"Are you happy with yourself? Killing your classmates, teachers, old friends even. Do you even know what you're doing?" she asks, tilting her head to the side a bit.

She can see he is pretty shocked by her boldness and it's silent for a minute. He recovers quickly and points his wand at her.

"That's enough, Mudblood." he spits and Crucio's her.

She screams and the second one is even worse than the first.

Draco smirks at her pain, that'll shut her up.

"What will happen with Potter if the Horcrux inside him is destroyed?" he screams in her face and the only thing she can do is sob in pain.

"Never-" she gasps out and she gets hit by his spell again.

"Answer my question or you'll die and we will take the Weasley girl." he treathens and his wand is pointed at her again.

She coughs and tries to sit upright. "He... he will die, together with the Horcrux." she chokes out and looks at the ground.

He grabs her by her t-shirt and brings her close to his face. "If you are not telling the truth, Mudblood, I will kill you personally. And that Weasley family too."

He looks at her shocked expression and looks her in the eye. It's silent for 10 seconds as they look at eachother, both not knowing what to do. He lets go of her and shakes his head, trying to get that dazed feeling out of his head.

Just when he steps out of her cell again, he turns around. "Yes Granger, I'm happy with myself." he sneeres and then he walks out.

Hermione is alone in the dark again and she sighs. She lays down on the cold solid floor and tries to get some more sleep and not be afraid. A few hours later, there is banging on her cell door and she shoots awake.

"Granger! Get up!" he yells and she gets up immediately. The door opens and Malfoy pulls her on her arm, out of the cell.

"Your information was right, in return you'll get a better room." he says, clearly not happy with the change Voldemort made. "You're staying there until the war ends." he mutters and pulls on her arm roughly. "If you try to escape now, you will die trying." he spits at her and he pulls her up the stairs.

Hermione is in a daze, not knowing what to do or say. They arrive at a bedroom and she almost cries when she sees a real bed. There are also a few book cases and a table with some chairs.

"These are rewards when you give the right information, Mudblood." he says annoyed as he looks at her with his arms crossed in frong of his chest.

"Is this chamber locked?" she asks, but knowing the answer deep down already.

"If you give out more information about Potter or the Order, then it won't be a anymore." he says simply.

She nods and bites her lip as she walks in.

"You better enjoy it, Mudblood." he sneers as he closes the door, leaving her alone.

She sighs as she falls back on the bed immediately, not knowing if she should like this or not.


	5. Chapter 5

**(a/n: I enjoyed writing this chapter so much! I got into detail a bit more, so tell me what you think about this 'new' style of writing! Enjoy!) **

Draco sighs as he looks at the paintings on the walls of Malfoy Manor. He barely comes into his own bedroom anymore, or at his level even. Granger is now allowed out of her room and allowed to wander on her level, but his bedroom is right next to hers. Whenever he comes up, he can see her strolling around the hallways, dressed in silky gowns. It scares him to bits. This was all Snape's idea, letting her bathe in luxury while being held prisoner. It'll turn her thoughts on the Order and she will stop fighting to get out.

She didn't say anything, only when she was supposed to. It wasn't hard anymore to get some information out of her, a sign she was giving up. The information she was giving wasn't that important, but she was desperate to get out of her prison and finally wander around. Draco thought she was probably looking for secrets of the Dark Side, but they were all in his own bedroom, and it's the only chamber that is locked.

But it scares him in how beautiful she looks. He won't say this out loud, ofcourse. But sometimes, when he can see her walking, he looks at the curly locks falling down her back and the pieces of skin that are exposed to his view. One part of him wants to kill her for bringing these thoughts to his head, but also one part of him just wants to look at her all the time. Only look. She is still a Mudblood and she is still dirty.

He had just come back from a battle against the Order, just barely escaping. The Light was getting stronger these days, but the Dark side was fighting back. The Order was also determinded to bring Granger back, apparently still believing she was alive. He wipes off the sweat and blood on his forehead and he was forced to go to his bedroom and face Granger. He walks up the stairs and there she was; in a long silky white dress and her hair curled and on one side of her head. She could see him looking probably but she didn't say anything. He locks eyes with her for one split-second and then he walks into his own bedroom.

He tore off his clothes that stick to his body because of all the blood and stepped into the shower. The hot water burned against his pale skin and he hissed. He rubbed all the blood of his arms, legs and chest and stepped out of the shower. He pulls on a thick bathrobe and sits in a lounge chair. He pours himself a drink and sighs.

He hears a knock on the door and he gets up immediately. Snape comes in with an invitation and hands it to him.

"Another ball? Snape, I told you I'm not interested in this ridiculous stuff." he says and he throws the invitation behind him and he turns his back to Snaoe.

"Draco, this ball is important. Every Death Eater is supposed to show up tomorrow night and show him his treasures." he says quietly, not leaving the room.

"My treasures? As if he hasn't seen them. These," he gestures to the room, "are my treasures."

"No, your treasure is the girl in the room next to us." he says and it's silent for a minute.

"You call that Mudblood a treasure?" he laughs and shakes his head. "And even if she was, I wouldn't fucking take her to a ball and fucking dance with her as if she is my mistress. She is a dirty Mudblood, Snape, have you forgotten that?"

"You still need to go to this ball and bring a girl." he says, ignoring his statement.

"Who are Blaise and Theo bringing?"

"They are no longer on our side."

Draco swiftly turns around and sets down his drink with a slam.

"What?!" he yells at him.

"They have betrayed the Dark Lord and are protected by the Order in a safe house." he says calmly, taking a sip from his drink.

"And Crabbe and Goyle?"

"They're dead."

Draco takes a large swig from a bottle and shakes his head even more.

"It's all on you now, Draco. You must go to this ball to prove yourself and bring Granger. Gamble her away with some poker, for all I care, but you must prove your worth."

Draco sighs and nods. He picks up the invitation and reads it now. Just as Snape is about to leave, Draco stops him.

"Make sure Granger is the most beautiful creature you've ever seen, expensive jewelry, big dresses, I don't care how much it will cost. I need to prove my worth." he says sternly to him and Snape just nods.

Draco sits on bed and takes another swig. Tomorrow is going to be hard.

* * *

><p>Hermione wanders around a bit, remembering how Malfoy looked. Was that the blood of her friends on his body? Snape wouldn't tell her much about how the war was going and she hated not knowing. She didn't see Malfoy that often, but when she saw him, she caught him staring at her. She pretends she doesn't see, but she can follow his eyes on her body. It makes her feel dirty.<p>

Snape walks out of Malfoy's bedroom and they lock eyes. She nods and she goes into her own bedroom, Snape following her.

"There is a ball tomorrow night." he states and she shrugs. There have been many balls in the time she has been here. She would always hide behind a wall and watch rich, pureblood woman and skimpy mistresses hanging on the arms of their men, hoping not to be gambled away that evening.

"Everyone is supposed to bring their treasures." he states again.

"So?"

"Your Malfoy's treasure."

"Oh."

"He isn't happy with it either, believe me. It took a lot of convincing on my part. But this is your chance, Hermione, to seduce him. This night will be the key to the information we all need."

"So, you mean to say that I have to sleep with him tomorrow night?"

"Only if he wants to. Don't push yourself on him, he likes the hunt."

She nods and sits on her bed, taking in the information.

"You will be pampered tomorrow, on Malfoy's orders. He is really planning to prove himself worthy to the Dark Lord. It shouldn't be that hard to get into his bedroom by then. I'll make sure to get him tipsy and I'll make sure he won't gamble you away."

She lets out a relieved sigh.

"I'll see you tomorrow night then." he states and leaves the room quickly.

Just as she is about to change into her nightgown, Malfoy himself comes into the room.

"I'm sure Snape already gave you orders, but I will give them myself again to be sure. You stay by my side at all times. You are my treasure and not anybody else's. I can touch you, but you can't touch me. You will not drink any alcoholic drinks and you will not talk to anybody except me and Snape." he states and she catches him looking at her again.

"If you break the rules, you know what's going to happen." he threathens and he leaves the room again.

Hermione quickly changes into her night gown and went to lay under the covers. She sighs as she looks at the ceiling.

Tomorrow night she will probably lay in another bed.


	6. Chapter 6

**(a/n: Longest chapter I've written for now! Enjoy!)**

Hermione woke up, streams of sunlight on her face. The smell of breakfast fills her nostrils and she sits up against the headboard. The curtains are already opened and she watches the garden. Even though she was very nervous for tonight, she had a good night of sleep. She tries to imagine herself between rich women with enormous ballgowns and she lets her head fall. Also the fact that she has to have sex with Malfoy tonight scares her. She has lost her virginity already to Ron in a drunk attempt to save their relationship. For the first time she's glad that it was him.

She untangles herself from the sheets and sits in a chair to eat some breakfast. Some people would say she should call herself lucky that she is being pampered and in a home. But Hermione is scared as hell. Every day could be her last if they don't need her anymore and she doesn't know what is going on outside of her chamber.

The door opens and 3 maidservants come in. They are quite young, Hermione notices, not much older than her. Have they been captured by Death Eaters as well? Are they muggle borns or are they mistresses who have been gambled away for a hundred times? So many questions but she doesn't dare to put them or herself in danger.

They prepare a bath for her and she gets in immediately, sighing as the warmth surrounds her. The whole bathroom smells amazing because of all the herbs that have been put in the bath. Her mind wanders off to tonight and she tries to focus on what is happening now. The maidservants wash her hair and put a lot of stuff in it to tame it. They brush her hair very carefully and delicate, as if not to break it.

She gets helped out of the bath and gets dried by different towels. They get rid of every possible hair on her body and even in her private parts and she blushes deeply. The maidservants have no facial expressions at all and they are silent all the time. They only nod or shake their heads. When she is all rubbed raw, she gets into another bath, this time for soothing her skin.

"What time is it?" she dares to ask, hoping to get something out of them.

"4 pm." one of them says, not looking at her.

She nods and closes her eyes, relaxing in the bathtub.

When she wakes up, the maidservants are all around her. They help her out of the bathtub again and dry her again with some towels. They hand her fiery red and lacy lingerie and she holds in her blush. She pulls it on and she gets a swift look in the mirror. She steps into a long red dress.

She looks into the mirror again and gasps at the beauty of her dress. It was a sleeveless one, with a 'V' cut in the top, which made it a daring dress. It hugged all her curves beautifully and she stepped into red high heels.

She sat down again as they did her hair and makeup. They gave her smokey eyes and red lipstick. They let her hair loose, falling down on her back. She could choose between a lot of jewelry and wondered if Malfoy chose this all by himself. Probably not.

When she looked into the mirror again she was plain silent. She couldn't utter any words. She has never looked so beautiful in her whole life.

"You look beautiful, miss." the youngest maidservant said and she looked at Hermione in the mirror.

"Thank you." she whispered and she looked at all 3 of the maids. They smiled at her, bowed their heads and left the room.

Her hands delicately touched the silver flower in her hair and the ring on her hand.

Her dinner was served and she ate alone as always.

After she ate, she touched up her makeup and hair and waited for Malfoy to walk with her to the party. This time she will be one of those women and she will not be watching safely from the top of the stairs. No, this time she will be one of them. And she hated him for it.

She didn't know whether to hate Malfoy or Voldemort. She would just hate them both. She could hear hysterical laughing and the clinking of glasses downstairs. She was getting nervous and she had to regain some of her strength, but it was hard. Within a few minutes, she would face every Death Eater that wanted to kill her, including Voldemort. And to top it off, she had to have sex with Malfoy to get important information for the Order.

She sighed as she looked out of the window and her front door opened. Her head turns as she sees Malfoy in black dress robes. She gets up and faces him.

His eyes are wide and his mouth is slightly open. He starts looking at her from top to bottom and she rolls her eyes. When he is still eyeing her after a minute she coughs and his head snaps up. His face falls into his famous sneer and he yanks her arm towards him.

"You look like a whore." he spits in her ear.

"And you look like you came out of a cows ass." she spits and he is taken aback.

They both walk down the stairs and just before they enter the ballroom, his hand snakes around her waist. She feels very uncomfortable like this, but she walks in with him. She has no choice anyway.

The ballroom is, unlike the rest of Malfoy Manor, very glowing. There are gold chandeliers and silver tables and chairs. House elves are the servants for the night and she gulps. Violins are set up and magically playing by themselves. She can see several women walking alone, but every man is accompanied with a woman. Glasses of gold champagne are on every table and she just wants to gulp some down to calm her nerves.

A Death Eater comes up to them and she recognizes him as Dolohov. He also has a woman next to him. She doesn't seem any older than 15. She can see her trembling in her skimpy dress. The grip on her waist tightens as Malfoy sees Dolohov ogling her. He shakes hands with him heartily and they go on about battles and other business she is not interested in. She looks around her, but after a minute she gets yanked into the conversation again.

"So, when did you catch this feisty one?" Dolohov smirks as he winks at her. It makes her want to vomit.

"Few weeks ago." Malfoy smirks back, as if he is happy to have her.

"Is she for sale?" Dolohov smirks even wider.

"She is-" but Malfoy gets interrupted by Snape, who is suddenly standing next to the group.

"Miss Granger is Malfoy's treasure and not for sale." he says calmly and she can see Malfoy looking at Snape as if he is crazy. She lets out a little sigh of relief, not being sold to Dolohov. Malfoy is bad, but he leaves her alone.

Snape offers them all a drink and she takes it gladly. But before she can drink it, Malfoy grabs it from her and gulps it down himself. A reminder that she can't enjoy this. They talk for 15 minutes and she can see some of the mistresses sitting on the lap of a man, kissing him unceasingly. She shudders and she walks further with Malfoy.

One minute it's loud and then one minute it's all quiet. And Hermione knows what that means. The Dark Lord has arrived.

Everyone stands in line to greet him and show them their newest treasures. All the women get laughed at and some of them run off, crying. This gives even more laughter.

"If you run off, you will go back to your old cell with no food." he whispers harshly in her ear. But she was not planning on running away. They get closer and closer to the Dark Lord and she gets more nervous. Eventually she is standing a few foot away from him. They bow before him as if he is a king and she keeps her head down.

"So this is the Mudblood, Draco." he says calmly.

Malfoy nods at him and forces her to look at Voldemort.

"Her face is not as dirty as her blood." he laughs and some men behind her laugh as well.

She raises her chin higher.

"Poor Mudblood all away from home." Voldemort smirks and she can hear more laughter. "Do you want to go back to your poor Muggle parents? Or are they dead?" he laughs and the whole line erupts in laughter. After a few more insults she bows her head and she and Malfoy walk away again.

She notices how much Malfoy is drinking when they sit down at a table. They eat some dinner and she can see all the men ogling her body and she is asked for a dance multiple times, but Malfoy always shakes his head no and she is relieved by this.

Suddenly, Malfoy yanks her arm and he takes her to the dance floor. There is a waltz going on and he leads her roughly. His grip on her waist and arm is painful and she winces. They dance for an hour like this and he leads her out of the ballroom, into a small corridor.

"You're so dirty, but you look so beautiful." he slurs drunkenly in her ear as he pushes her up against the wall. "Every man in that room wants you, but you're mine." he hisses as he gropes her breast.

She dodges his attempts to kiss her and he kisses her neck instead.

"We should go to your bedroom." she whispers huskily, hoping that he will fall for it and he nods. He apparates to his bedroom and she feels sparks because of the little magic she felt in her body.

He throws her on the bed, but when he wants to lay on top of her, he vomits all the alcohol out of his system. All over the floor.

Hermione shrieks and clasps her hand over mouth.

"Get out!" he screams and his chin is covered with vomit. Hermione doesn't have to think twice and she runs out of his bedroom.

She opens her bedroom door and she jumps on her own bed, crying. Crying because of all what has happened, but also because of the war and not knowing how her friends and family are.

She hates this war.


	7. Chapter 7

**(a/n: Hi everyone! The end of this chapter has some adult content, so if you're underage please skip that part! I wish all of my readers a Merry Christmas and enjoy this chapter!)**

Another month had passed since the ball and Hermione was still allowed to wander around her level. She didn't have much more information that was relevant for the war at this point. She didn't know how Harry and Ron were doing and the plans they had made were probably cancelled now Hermione was captured.

The morning after the vomiting accident she had faced Malfoy with some breakfast, still hoping to get in his room, but he just grabbed the plate out of her hands and closed the door again. She had shrugged and walked back to her room. It was getting harder and harder every day to get under his skin. He didn't torture her anymore to get information, but they barely talked.

Every day, there were more Death Eaters in Malfoy Manor and she could hear hushed whispers and screams below her. Sometimes, at night, she could hear people begging not to get killed, but she would hear 'Avada Kedavra' and a faint scream and then it would be quiet again. This mostly scared her so much she would crawl under the covers and cover her ears with her hands as if to numb out the sound that was still so loud in her head.

Malfoy mostly hunted at night, she noticed. He was always gone after he ate dinner in his room and he would come back in the morning with blood on his body. He would shower, eat breakfast and then sleep all day till it was dinnertime again. It was crazy how she knew his schedule by heart, but it was not like she had something else to do, not yet at least. Snape comes by in her room often, but he doesn't give her the information she wants to badly. He is mostly nagging on her to do something about Malfoy and when she told him what happened to the ball, he wasn't even pleased with what happened.

There is a knock on the door and she wakes up from her own thoughts. The door opens and it's Snape, again. She sits upright on her bed and he stands before her.

"Hermione, you have been here too long already, it's becoming life threatening now. You have to get in action with Malfoy! You're not even trying!" he says as he walks around her room.

"I am! At the ball he-"

"At the ball he groped your breast, big deal. You were in his room for what, 5 seconds? Till you ran out."

"He ordered-"

"He orders everyone around Hermione! But that doesn't mean you should follow those orders! You should be his mistress, wantonly wiping off his vomit and kiss him!" he yells at her this time.

Because of this, Hermione starts crying.

"Don't you know how scared I am? Every night I hear people get killed and I'm only hoping that I won't be the next one! My information is useless now and I notice everyone in my neighborhood wants me dead by now. And you want me to think about sex with Malfoy? It's not like I'll stay alive because of that! I'm fucking scared Snape!" she cries out and she tries to wipe her tears, but they keep on flowing.

Snape is silent because of this and walks towards her.

"I'm only trying to help-"

"It's fine, it is. Can you please, just go for awhile? I want to be alone." she says calmly and she looks up to the ceiling, trying not yo cry again.

Snape nods and he walks out the door.

* * *

><p>Draco makes eye contact with Snape as he leaves Granger's room and he can get a glimpse of her crying on the bed. He once asked him what he was doing in her room all the time and he said he is mentally torturing her. He had nodded and not asked more.<p>

He thinks about the night of the ball a lot, how she had looked and how they had danced together. She had brought him breakfast that morning, but he was too embarrassed to try to bed her again. The great sex-god Draco Malfoy had vomited on the floor, just as he was about to have sex with a beautiful lady. He shook his head embarrassed.

He ate some dinner by himself again and he reminded himself he could eat slowly, there was no battle tonight. He enjoyed his meal for once and looked out of the garden.

One of the maids came in and told him his parents wanted to see him. He wiped his mouth and followed her.

His mother hugs him tightly as he walks into his father's study.

"Father, Mother," he nods at them.

"Draco." his father nods back at him.

It's silent for a while, the three of them not being left alone a lot. His mother coughs, a sign she wants her husband to speak up.

"So, your mother and I have made a decision about something. Your future wife." he says calmly and Draco gulps, he knew this was coming.

"We decided it to be Pansy Parkinson." his mother says.

"WHAT?!" Draco yells and he stands closer to his father. "Are you fucking mental? I'm not marrying that pig! She is everyone's nightmare!"

"We thought that Pansy is a lovely girl-"

"Lovely? Have you seen her? The only thing she cares about is makeup and my money!" he states.

"The decision is made Draco, you are marrying Pansy Parkinson, if you like it or not." his father states as he stood up from his chair.

Draco's hands end up in his hair and he walks to the door, slamming it closed behind him. In a daze he walks back to his own bedroom and he sits on his bed. If his life wasn't ruined already, it was now. He would marry the pug-faced Slytherin he always hated. He takes off his dress robes, leaving him in a dress shirt and some trousers. He shudders at the thought of always being with her, going to parties with her, sleeping in the same bed... He shakes his head quickly to get the thought out of his head and he decides to get some fresh air on the balcony.

He watches the moon between all the stars and he takes a sip of whiskey. He can watch Granger from here, he notices and he can see her reading a large book. He takes another sip as he watches her intently. Her hair falling in front of her face, the silky dark red dress she is wearing, which reminds him of the dress she wore the night of the ball. As if on cue, she looks up from her book and looks around her. And Draco knows what to do.

He slams the grand balcony doors behind him and opens and closes his own bedroom door. He walks to her door and opens it. He can see her shocked expression, not expecting him, and he closes her door with his foot. He walks towards her and throws the book on the ground.

"Malfoy, what are you-"

He shuts her up with a passionate kiss. He is shocked by how soft her lips are and the fact that she is a Mudblood is far back in his mind. He tastes a hint of strawberry and he feels her hands around his neck. He cups her face with both of his hands and crawls on top of her. Her hands roam over his back and he grins at how responsive she is.

He feels her hands at the buttons of his dress shirt and he breaks apart from her mouth to pull the shirt over his head. He glances at her already swollen, red lips before kissing her again. He pulls down the zipper of her dress and he gently kisses the soft, newly exposed skin.

This was crazy and he knew it. But the thought of marrying Pansy set him off guard. The thought of never kissing anyone else than that pug face made him desperate for anyone else.

He shrugs the dress off her and unclasps her bra as well. He kisses her roughly now, desperate for some relief. She notices his desperation without any communication and she unbuckles his belt and takes off his pants. They are both left in their underwear now and he looks her dead in the eye. She is so beautiful like this, all flushed and sweaty.

"You make me go crazy, Granger." he whispers in her ear as he lays on top of her again and bites her neck, which gives a moan from her. "You're so beautiful and mine, you're mine Granger." he whispers again and he leaves a love bite on her neck, marking her.

After a few minutes, they are both fully naked and his hands roam over her entire body under him.

"Malfoy, please, be- be gentle." he is surprised by her comment and he only nods.

He gently moves into her and he holds still to get her used to him. She nods after a minute and she moans loudly as he moves gently but after a while roughly. They go on like this for 15 minutes and he feels himself finishing soon. He bites her neck again and finishes under him. He can't help but look at her in her bliss. This sends him over the edge and he falls on the bed next to her, gasping for air.

He looks at the ceiling, thinking about what he just did and looks to his side. He can see Granger thinking as well. After a minute she covers herself with the blankets and he gets up abruptly. He puts on his boxers and he grabs his shoes.

He leaves without uttering a single word to her.


	8. Chapter 8

**(A/n: Hope you all enjoyed Christmas! Enjoy!)**

Hermione sat up against the headboard, the covers covering up her naked form. She sat with her mouth open, surprised he had left so quickly. But who was she kidding, he wasn't the kind of guy who would cuddle up and hold her all night. What were they now? Will she bring him breakfast tomorrow and act like all is normal?

She rolled into the covers so it became a dress, and stepped out of the bed. She grabbed her bra and underwear from the ground and when she got up, she met herself in the mirror. She was quite surprised on how she looked, not like herself at all. Her hair all wild and all over the place, her face flushed and her lips swollen and the bruises in her neck from his love bites. She looks at herself and thinks about what Malfoy was thinking when he came into her room. Was he actually lusting for her? Or did something else happen, something that had upset him, and that's why he was acting so weird?

She pulls on her underwear and sees the dress shirt he left behind, laying on the ground. She looks at it bewildered for a moment, grabs it from the floor and pulls the shirt on. The smell of his cologne fills her nostrils and it makes her think about what happened 30 minutes earlier. His smell was so present. She swears she can even smell it when she walks past his bedroom.

She grabs the covers and pulls them over her when she lays in her bed again. She turns and turns, but she can't sleep at all, her mind too awake. She did what she was told to do, but it wasn't in his room, so she still couldn't do anything about the war. This meant she had to have sex with him again and maybe he won't even do that. She face palmed herself and turned one final time, before finally succumbing to sleep.

She woke up because of a knock on the door. She could see it was morning already and she groggily decided she would stay in bed all day.

"Come in." she says, expecting some maidservants bringing her breakfast like they did every morning and she rubs the sleep out of her eyes.

She did not expect who came in. Draco Malfoy himself. She looks at him with big eyes and he just smirks, as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

"Yes, Granger. I'm bringing you breakfast. Big deal." he says mocking her and he put the plate on her dinner table.

"W-why?" she manages to get out.

"Because I need to tell you something." he says as he pours himself a drink and sits down in a grand sofa.

Even in her room, he had all the power he wanted and needed. He took up all the attention.

"Last night was," he says while casually watching his drink shaking in his hand, "something that never should happen again. It was an act of silly desperation. I am not lusting after you, Granger, you should know that. So don't feel honored the great Draco Malfoy set his standards so low he fucked a Mudblood."

"Well, it wasn't like you were thinking about that when you were ripping my clothes off." she says, not afraid of him anymore.

"It wasn't like you were stopping me." he smirks, knowing that he has won the battle.

She huffs at him and it's silent for a minute. Then, he notices what she is wearing.

"Is that my dress shirt, Granger?" he asks disgusted.

Hermione's face becomes beet red and she looks down at her hands, softly shaking head. Malfoy bursts out laughing, but it isn't necessarily a happy one. It's a mean laugh, to embarrass her. She becomes even more red and wants to slap herself for wearing that shirt.

"Don't worry Granger, you can keep it. I don't want your Mudblood bacteria on my skin." he says and he opens the door again.

"For your information, you have Mudblood bacteria on your dick since last night."

His head turns and he smirks. "Touché." and he walks out and closes the door.

She pulls of his shirt and rips it apart. There. She rips off her underwear and she steps into the shower. There's hot water coming out of it, but she doesn't even notice. She stays in the shower for at least an hour and then comes out, her skin all red and her fingers shriveled because of the hot water.

She pulls on her own pajama and went to lay in her own bed again. Not before she threw the breakfast out of the window, right before his eyes. She pulls the blankets over her head and sighs. What a dick. She could have expected it of course, she hadn't really tried to het under his skin in a love way. So, she could have expected him not feeling anything but lust. And not even that. She groaned in her pillow.

One side of her wanted to walk around in skimpy dresses to get him to have sex with her one way or another, but another part of her wanted to keep her innocence so he would fall for her angel side. But he wouldn't fall for her at all if she was acting like this. She just needed him to talk to her. But what should they talk about?

They didn't have anything in common, only that he was one position below her in the best grades at Hogwarts. And she bets he doesn't want to talk about thát. Does he even read? Does he have interests? He was a Seeker back at Hogwarts, but she didn't know much about Quidditch. He was also in her Runes class, a fact she never told Harry and Ron.

She got up and walked over to the bookcases and let her fingers glide over the books. She found one about Runes and one about Potions, which she thought he enjoyed as well.

She dressed in a more sexy dress than she would normally wear and did more effort to do her makeup and hair. This was the art of seduction, right?

She knocked on his door and it took a while before he opened it. He looks at her surprised and he quickly frowns again. "What are you doing here Granger." he says annoyed.

"I thought that maybe we could read these books together?" she asks, raising her voice a bit.

"Granger, have you gone crazy?" he laughs, but it dies down quickly.

"No, but I thought that because I am probably staying here for a long time, might as well get to know you." she says, cocking her head to the side and licking her lips. She always saw the slutty girls doing this at Hogwarts.

Malfoy raises one eyebrow, sighs and opens the door for her. "Whatever you say, Granger."

She smiles at him and her inner self screams in victory. She steps into his room gratefully and looks around. The first thing she notices is the big silver chandelier hanging in the middle of the room. The room has a French style of furniture, just like the rest o Malfoy Manor. She notices his study and forces herself not to look it too long.

That study was probably the solution to the end of this war, and she was standing one inch away from it.


	9. Chapter 9

**(A/n: Short one, but I'm busy. Hope you enjoy and please review about what you think so far!)**

Her fingers delicately touch the study, gazing over the handle of the drawer. There was a lock on it, she notices and she sighs in frustration. Her head snaps up when she feels something cold touch her arm. A glass of whiskey, how surprising. She takes it and gulps it all down at once, She can see Malfoy raise his eyebrows, but he doesn't hesitate to fill her glass again.

"What exactly do you want from me, Granger?" he asks as he sips his own whiskey and puts it back on the small coffee table next to the grand sofa.

"I don't wánt something, Malfoy, as you said; I'm a Mudblood and you're pureblood superior. And a Death Eater." her voice quivers as she speaks out the last part.

His head snaps up this time and he looks at her with a funny face. Hermione puts her books down on the dinner table, but she doesn't open them. "Why me?"

"Like I said, I was desperate and you-"

"I don't mean that. I mean, why kidnapping me when you could have had Harry straight away."

"Potter is a great danger to us and himself," he admits after a long silence, not sure of telling her this already, "we needed information from the brainiac and well, that's you."

Hermione sighs and looks down at her feet, finally knowing this answer that had been haunting her. "Well, I brought these Potions and Runes books, because I don't really know what interests you, but you were in my classes back at Hogwarts, so I thought that-"

She hadn't noticed Malfoy walking towards her when she was rattling on about books. But she noticed him when she felt his warmth one inch from her.

"You still haven't told me what you want." he asks, in the urgent tone he used when he was torturing her a few weeks ago.

"Fine. I just wanted someone to talk to, and I don't care how sick this sounds. Me wanting to befriend my own torturer, but I don't think you're bad Malfoy. You just made the wrong choices." she says, raising her voice a bit.

"So you pity me?"

"A bit, yes. It wasn't like you chose to be born a Malfoy."

Malfoy softly shakes his head. "Fine. What do you want to talk about then?" he finally gives in and grabs the book from his table.

"I want to know how the War is going."

Malfoy sighs. "Merlin, Granger. I thought you came to talk about books and your house-elfs."

"Oh please, like I want to talk about some stupid Runes when all of this is going on." she sneers and she drinks from her whiskey.

"I can't tell you."

This time it's Hermione who sighs.

"You can!" she yells at him, "It's not like I can tell anyone. When I'm out of this prison I'll be dead or the war will be over, or were you planning to let me go?"

"Of course not." he says quickly and his mind ponders about if he should her. Meanwhile, Hermione is biting her lip, waiting in agony for his answer.

"What do you want to know?"

* * *

><p>Hermione closes her own door again, after talking to Malfoy again. She would go to him almost every evening to talk about the War. She noticed she became the person he didn't have a few years ago. The War wasn't the only thing they talked about after a while, they talked about Hogwarts, Quidditch, classes and even personal interests. She would often catch herself laughing and when she did, he would always just grin. Sometimes Hermione was plain scared, and not of him, but of herself. He was the one who should be feeling things, not her.<p>

She wouldn't say she was feeling affection towards him, but she thought more about him and her heart would jump when she caught him looking at her. She could say he was her downfall. She had to keep her feelings for him down and they must not come above. She was the one who had to win this game, otherwise all of this had no use.

She hadn't seen Snape for a while. He was very busy, she heard from Malfoy. Voldemort didn't trust him so much anymore and he had to prove his worth with a quest. Malfoy didn't know the quest, but he had heard from his aunt that it was life threatening and he probably won't come out alive. At this, Hermione had gulped. If Snape was gone, who could she trust?

She was no longer afraid of being executed. She could sense Malfoy was starting to care about her and she was a good talker. He didn't admit this of course. She no longer heard the faint screams in the cellars, only once in a while, but she doesn't hear the Killing Curse right after it, which she thinks is a good sign.

Malfoy once admitted on a drunk night, that the Light was getting stronger and that he was afraid they were going to lose the battle. Hermione only nodded at him and didn't say anything. He had nodded as well and she had told him she went to bed. Inside, she screamed of joy. She was almost free!

She could hear a party going on downstairs. She even smiled to herself, remembering how she looked that evening and she couldn't help but open her door again and watch the guests arrive one by one. She sat on the floor as always, her legs between the bars and her feet dangling. First, she was afraid people could see her, but they never looked up. They were too busy with themselves and the party to look up.

Then, she hears a door open and close. It was Malfoy. She smiles a little and he went to sit next to her without saying anything. In silence, they enjoyed looking at the people coming on and she watched all the women again.

"You didn't look like a whore, Granger." he says suddenly, "You looked beautiful."

She just looks at him, but he keeps looking at the guests. She tries finding a good answer.

"I can't believe you puked, Malfoy. I thought you could hold your liquor."

To her surprise, he just laughs and this time he looks at her laughing as well. They look at each other for a second longer and then they focus their attention on the party again.

"I never knew you could be fun." he says suddenly again.

"Why all the compliments? Are you drunk?" she laughs nervously.

"You are always true to me, Granger. It's time I'm being true to you."

This time, they both lean in. The kiss is gentle, but passionate. It doesn't lead to sex, but that's okay. It's not like the last time, a few weeks ago. They are both participants of the kiss and this time, they both feel something stirring in their stomach.


	10. Chapter 10

**(A/N: Thank you so much for the people who reviewed, I'm glad you like the story! I'm so sorry for the late update, but I'm going to open the musical Oliver Twist tomorrow so I was quite busy with rehearsals. New chapter will be soon and quite bigger than this one. Enjoy!)**

That night, the night of their intended kiss, Hermione slept beside him in his bed. When he slept, he really did look like an angel. His hair, normally gelled, was now tousled in all places and the normal frown he always wore was gone and replaced with a gentle expression. She wonders what he dreams about. She wonders what he would look like if he had a nightmare. She wonders if he even has them, since his reality is a nightmare.

Even though he is laying beside her and even holding her, she can't seem to fall asleep. Maybe because that desk is staring at her, or the fact that she is laying beside her torturer and lover.

Maybe the reminder that she is really stuck in here, makes her walk towards the desk. She must not forget the fact that he is still her torturer and there is still a war going on.

When he told her all these stories about the war and how the Light was doing so well, she could only scream of joy. But it also scared her. What would they do to Malfoy? And that thought scared her even more than the first.

Her fingers stroke over the desk again and she sighs. If she could only find a key...

She tried multiple spells, but nothing worked and she expected that. It was Malfoy.

She walks around the room, thinking of a logical place where he would hide it. It reminds her of finding the flying key when they were trying to stop Snape of finding the Philosophers Stone. How wrong they were then. And how young. The sight of 1st year Malfoy flooded into her mind. Had he thought he would be like this when he would grow up?

She shakes her head and her hands end up in her hair. This was mad. All of it.

When she thinks she has seen every corner, drawer and closet from inside out, she quits trying to find it and gets in the big bed again. The arms of Malfoy find her almost immediately and she just sighs.

"Where were you?" he groggily asks, his eyes still closed.

"I couldn't sleep." she says and she closes her eyes.

"Take a Sleeping Potion, it's in my drawer." he says, still groggily and he turns his back towards her.

She opens one eye. "What drawer."

"The one in my desk, Granger. You have to turn the handle 3 times." he yawns and her eyes are both open now.

She waits until she is sure he has fallen asleep and then she gets out of bed again. Her nerves are almost taking the best of her. He didn't even have a key!

She stands before it, staring at it like it is an actual person. Those 3 turns can save the lives of innocent people and of her family and friends. But will it also kill Malfoy?

She is shocked by her own thoughts. A few weeks ago, she wanted him dead and now she was hesitating. Before she can stop herself, she turns the handle 3 times and opens it.

There is alot of paper and a tiny bottle; Sleeping Potion. She grabs it and puts it on the desk. Before she starts rummaging trough the papers, she looks behind her. He is still sleeping. She takes a deep breath to steady her breathing.

She looks at the dates of all the paperwork and they're not sorted. How can she know what's old and new? She shakes her head, closes the drawer with a bang and sits on the ground, the sleeping potion still on the desk and her back against it. Her eyes close too soon and she falls asleep against the desk.

* * *

><p>She wakes up, but still with her eyes closed. She feels hands holding her body. And she feels that she is in the air and moving. She is being carried. She opens her eyes very lightly and sees to her relief that it's Malfoy holding her.<p>

She pretends to be asleep and she is carried to his bed again. She feels him lay her down and a few seconds later he is beside her and rolls her on top of him.

His skin is warm. That's the first thing she noticed. When they had sex for the first time, she didn't touch his body that much, but now her hand was on his chest and she feels his heartbeat. It was kind of a weird feeling, laying there on his chest.

"You're beautiful, Hermione." he whispers in her ear, not aware that she is awake.

Hermione.

He said her name.

Her eyes open but she quickly closes them and let's herself succumb to sleep again.

* * *

><p>This time, when she opens her eyes, it's light outside. She lets out a yawn and looks beside her, but Malfoy isn't there.<p>

She sits upright, looking around and she suddenly sees him sitting in a chair and she gives a yelp of fright.

"Merlin. You frightened me." she says but chuckled a bit at the end.

"Don't I always?" he says, but smirks.

Hermione shakes her head and they look at each other. He suddenly stands up and starts walking around the room. Hermione's eyes follow him and she is quite frightened now that he is all quiet. He picks up the Sleeping Potion.

"Where- Where did you get this, Granger?"

She gulps at him, saying her surname again.

"From you drawer." she says boldly.

"How did you know how to open it?"

"You told me to do so."

"Oh."

She sees his shocked expression, he obviously didn't remember what he said last night.

So he didn't remember calling her Hermione, probably. But he had said it.

He opens the drawer and puts the bottle back in.

"Fine." he suddenly says very lightly and the maidservants come in with breakfast.

The one second he is a lover, than he is a torturer and than he is your friend. He was a roller-coaster of emotions and she was expected to follow trough.

In the past, she always thought of him as an emotionless monster, but it's quite the opposite really. He has too much emotions.


	11. Chapter 11

**(A/n: Uhg, it was hard to write this chapter! But I did it! Hope you enjoy and please review!)**

The parties had stopped. She could no longer hear the sound of clinking glasses, giggles of women and loud laughing from men. Instead of mistresses clinging to their boyfriends, she saw girls younger than her being dragged into the Manor, screaming. Instead of hearing faint classical music in the background, she heard screams of torture loud and clear beneath her. The clicking of high heels on the floor were replaced with stomping footsteps. This was her reminder that it was still war. The fantasy she lived in for months was over now, she realizes. She feels guilty, for everything. Her friends were fighting for the greater good and the only thing she was doing was cuddling up with Draco Malfoy instead of getting information.

She had noticed that Malfoy was a vulnerable person on the inside. Once you broke down his walls, which apparently she did, he quickly showed his true feelings. Those true feelings were mostly anger, but sometimes sadness. He wouldn't cry of course, he was too much of a man for that, but he told her everything.

She had now access to his bedroom and she stayed there most of the time. She was told not to wander around anymore and she knew that if she stayed in her own bedroom, she would not see him. He knew she couldn't do anything with the information inside his study and she gave up being mad at it.

It became harder for her to still hate him.

Like now, he had come back from a Death Eater meeting and he decided to take a quick nap in his room. She's reading a book from his private library, but she can't keep her eyes off his sleeping form. His brows not furrowed, his mouth slightly open and his hear not gelled. He simply looked like an angel.

But he is the devil.

He is a fallen angel who used to be God's favorite.

She has to remind herself every second that he was not her savior, he is her torturer and what they called their 'love' was sick. Simply just sick.

But she can't resist not looking at him, when he was calmly sleeping and she dared not to interrupt his sleep.

"Granger, please, stop looking at me." she hears him sigh suddenly.

Her mouth gapes open and she flushes red immediately.

"I-I" she struggles to find words.

"Come." he says and gestures with his hand.

Hermione walks towards him with her book still in her hands and sits on the bed with her back against the headboard.

"No." he sort of whines and he throws the book out of her hands. Before she can protest, he grabs her legs, pushes her down onto the bed and holds her.

Hermione is too surprised again to bring out any words and waits for him to say anything.

"You want to walk around the garden tonight?" he whispers softly in her ear.

She almost screamed her 'yes'. She hasn't been outside since she came here and now he just invites her. She longed to sniff the fresh air, smell flowers and feel like she was free.

"Yes, I would love to." she answers casually.

He nods at her, sits against the headboard himself and pours himself a glass of whiskey.

"We have to be careful though, you cannot be seen. We wouldn't want any other Death Eaters to have you, hm?" he spoke to her like she was a child.

She nods at him this time, and she thinks about his weird behavior again. One time he is a grown up gentleman and speaks to her like she is a child, then he talks like he is the boy from Hogwarts and then he talks like someone she doesn't know, but makes her heart flutter secretly. He isn't understandable and she doesn't get what he wants from her. He hasn't asked for any information for weeks and hasn't even tortured her for months. Did he just want good company, now that she became interesting?

She accepted the fact that she could never understand him.

* * *

><p>It was exactly 1am as she looked at the clock. The moon shines high on the garden and she understands that they have to go late, but not this late. She just shakes her head and thinks about the fact that she is even allowed to go outside again.<p>

She was in her own room again and wanted to dress up nicely for her walk around the garden with him. The long dresses bored her now and she chooses to wear a nice summer dress. She does her hair in a nice ponytail and her lips a bold red. She was told to still wear a jacket, because it could still be cold out.

She opened her own door again and looked both ways before stepping into the hallway. She knocked on his door three times and he pulled her in.

For the few hours she hadn't seen him, he had changed drastically. His face was full panic and he hadn't done his hair. The buttons on his shirt weren't done and he was walking around the room, as if trying to find a solution for something.

"What's wrong, Draco?" she asks gently and she puts a hand on his shoulder.

He looks even more panicked now that she used his first name.

"Nothing's wrong, let's go." he says hurriedly and he quickly closes the buttons on his shirt, pulls on a thick robe and grabs her hand.

As they walk fast trough the hallways of Malfoy Manor she can't help but look around. The paintings on the walls, the black chandeliers and the high ceilings. She feels as if the air is already different out here than in the hallway of their rooms.

He opens the high veranda doors and closes them behind her. She gasps at the beauty of the garden. It is even more beautiful than what it looked like from her own window. All different kinds of flowers and even fireflies dancing in the wind. A fresh wind going trough her hair and she smells the fresh spring air, even better than she remembered.

As she looks behind her, she can see Draco being a bit caught off guard as well. The worried look on his face is gone for a minute and when she smiles at him, he smiles back. She looks at their enclosed hands and he strokes her thumb on her palm gently.

He tugs her along gently and they walk by a pond silently. She enjoys hearing the clattering of the water and the smell of fresh roses in her nose.

They walk further and the rows of flowers stop and she can only see fields of grass before her. The moonlight catches the fresh dew on the grass and its breathtaking. She looks beside her, and Draco looks at her as well. They lock eyes for a minute and Hermione steps closer to him, so she is in front of him.

She puts a loose hair strand behind his ear and chuckles.

"Why are you chuckling?" he whispers.

"It's spring!" she laughs and she dances around by herself.

"Hermione, stop! You can be seen!" he says sternly, but chuckles afterwards at seeing how ridiculous she looks.

She stands before him. "Come on." she chuckles as she tries to tug him with her.

He shakes his head and Hermione still tries to tug him along with her weird dance.

He tugs at her arm instead now and she bumps against his chest softly.

He looks at her and his hand ends up on her right cheek, stroking it softly with his thumb before kissing her. The kiss is simply magical and her arms end up around his neck. When she tries to deepen it, he pulls back.

"Hermione, you- you need to go." he whispers and she swears she stopped breathing.

"What?" she frowns confusedly and she takes a step back.

"It's not safe here anymore." he says sadly.

"What do you mean, it's not safe. It has never been safe for me, I have been kidnapped." she states at him but he just looks at the ground.

"They will explain it to you." he whispers and he moves to grab his wand out of his robe.

"Who will explain it to me? I don't understand!" she cries at him. "Don't you dare point your wand at me, Draco Malfoy!" she almost screams at him as she sees him taking his wand.

"Fucking trust me, Granger! You will be fucking safe!" he screams now as well, but he doesn't do anything except pointing his wand at her.

"I don't understand! What the hell is going on?" she cries at him and she walks towards him, grabbing the arm who holds his wand.

He stops pointing his wand at her and hugs her tightly.

"Hermione, I'm on the side of the Light. The Manor is not safe for you anymore. Snape just came back from his failed quest and told me the Death Eaters will come soon to infiltrate the Manor. The Weasleys will give you all the information you need, but you need to go now." he says sternly and she can't believe what he just said.

She looks up and kisses him again, with all the passion inside her that has build up.

"Draco, what are they going to do with you?" she is crying now.

"I don't know, but I'm sure as hell that I will fight back. They will not get me easily." she sees him trying to be strong for her, but she knows he is on the verge of breaking down.

"I don't want you to die." she sobs. "I wanted you dead since I can remember, but I don't want you to die Draco. Believe me."

Draco holds her even tighter and she sobs into his chest.

"I love you." she whispers, but she is not sure if he heard it.

"You need to go now, they will be here any minute." he says sternly and he grabs an old shoe out of his robe.

"Hold on to this and you will get to the Burrow." he says as he hands it to her and she nods.

10...

9...

8...

He looks at her almost apologetically.

7...

6...

5...

"Granger, I-"

4...

She looks up at him with wide eyes.

3...

"I-"

2...

"I love you." he says and he can see her eyes become wide before she vanishes into thin air.


	12. Chapter 12

**(Short update, I know, I promise the next chapters will be longer again! Enjoy!)**

Her feet landed on solid ground and she gasped for air. She looked around her and saw the Burrow not far from where she stood. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and started gasping for air as she cried it all out.

She had heard him. Even if it was the last second before the Portkey took off, she had heard him. Those three words she didn't even know she longed for.

Was it because she had said it too? Had he even heard her when she was sobbing into his chest?

And he was probably fighting right now for the greater good. And she wasn't fighting along. Again.

She was sick of being held safe for her own good, they didn't know what was good for her. She wanted to fight, that made her feel better. She didn't care if she died, her life for 1,000 people. She was purposely being kept out of war situations and she was totally sick of it. Even Draco Malfoy, who hated her for 7 years was now protecting her.

And now he was going to die. Hundred or more Death Eaters were coming and he had to do it all by himself, because he was protecting her.

She wiped the dry and the new tears off her cheeks, as she didn't want to cry anymore, and walks towards the Burrow with the old shoe still in her hand. Holding onto it for dear life, her last little piece of Draco she had left.

The walk towards the Burrow was only 5 minutes, but it felt like 5 hours. Every step closer to the Burrow meant a step further away from Draco. She looked at the moon still shining bright and she couldn't believe it was still the same moon as she saw just minutes ago. She shook her head and continued her step. She wanted answers, and she wanted them now.

The light that shines out of the seemingly warm house was vibrant on her skin. She smiles a little, opens the door and steps over the threshold.

"Hermione!" she hears a womanly voice say and she recognizes it as Molly Weasley. She gets pulled into a big hug and this makes her cry again.

"Oh, oh it's alright dear, you're safe now. They can't get you here." she says softly and rubs Hermione's back.

"Please, Mrs. Weasley. You need to tell me what is happening." she says, her voice shaking as she pulls back.

Mrs. Weasley only nods and lets her sit down at the table. She sits down herself as well and grabs Hermione's hand.

"Draco Malfoy has been protecting you since he told Snape his feelings for you..." she began talking and she explained everything.

How Snape had pointed all the attention on her so they could give Harry more time. They had of course not expected that Ron would leave. There was still no sign of him. She explained that Snape had convinced Draco to come over to the Light side and join the Order. That the dungeons were too dangerous for her and that's why she was suddenly bathing in luxury and safety. Draco had given Snape the locket and he told Voldemort he was on a quest hiding the Horcruxes, while actually looking for solutions for destroying them.

Draco, being the right hand of Voldemort, had easy access to all the information he needed and that's why Hermione hadn't found anything useful in his study, he already passed it to the Order. That night after they had sex, he had decided to go spy for the Order. She had saved thousands of lives by loving him.

This night, Snape had come back and he still hadn't found all the weapons to destroy the Horcruxes and Voldemort had used his Occlumency against him. He had seen short visions of Draco accepting his role as a spy and ordered all Death Eaters to go to the Manor right now.

Hermione was silent as Mrs. Weasley stopped talking and she looked at the young girl before her.

"I-I..." she coughs out and her promise not to cry anymore is thrown out of the window as she starts crying again.

Mrs. Weasley awkwardly pats her in the back and tries to sooth her, but Hermione won't calm down.

"Let me go back!" she cries and stands up from her chair.

"Hermione, dear, you can't-"

"LET ME GO BACK!" she screams this time and tries to walk out of the door. Mrs. Weasley gets up to grab her and in that exact moment Mr. Weasley and Kingsley Shacklebolt pop into the living room.

"Arthur, help!" Mrs. Weasley gasps out as she is trying to hold Hermione back.

Kingsley and Mr. Weasley jump into action immediately and grab her by her arms an legs.

"THEY'LL KILL HIM! HE WON'T SURVIVE! LET ME GO BACK AND HELP HIM!" Hermione screams and cries as she tries to kick everyone out of her way. Mrs. Weasley is crying in the back of the living room with a hand closed before her mouth.

"HOW CAN YOU DO THIS TO HIM! HE IS HELPING YOU ALL!" she is screaming and Kingsley and Mr. Weasley grab their wands. "YOU ARE MURDERERS!" she screams last time before she is stunned.

"We will un-stun you, if you will not try to run away." Kingsley says calmly and Arthur wipes off the sweat in his forehead. They can still see the anger in her eyes, but after 2 minutes it subsides, knowing that they will wait till she is calmed down.

They un-stun her and help her get to her feet. They set her down on the chair again and Mrs. Weasley sets a bottle of Firewhiskey on the table. It magically fills the glasses on table and Hermione takes a big gulp of it.

The burning down her throat pains her but not for long. She wants to take another gulp of it, but they grab her hand that wants to take the glass.

"Did you really think we would let Malfoy fight alone?" Mr. Weasley asks calmly and Hermione blushes furiously.

"The whole Order, except us is at the Manor right now." Kingsley says and he takes a gulp Firewhiskey himself now.

"Do you think he will make it?" she dares to ask and she can see Mr. Weasley and Kingsley exchanging looks.

"Well, they're most angry at him of course. He passed all the information to the Order, even more than Snape did. He also made sure the Death Eaters would forget to cast a spell in a battle, a very clever move of him. He is very intelligent." Kingsley says.

"I know." Hermione whispers, more to herself.

The three adults look at her with a look she can't read.

"Was he good to you?" Mrs. Weasley almost whispers, not holding back her motherly instincts.

Hermione looks up and leans her head on hand. She closes her eyes as she thinks about it and nods at her.

"He's the most amazing man I have ever met, Mrs. Weasley. He's arrogant, selfish, not understandable and I want to hex him into oblivion sometimes, but I love him."


	13. Chapter 13

**(A/N: I am SO terribly sorry for leaving you guys waiting. School is basically hating me, I had a writer's block and I had the flu. I hope you will enjoy this chapter and I will try to update once a week!) **

He breathes out when she's gone. He stares at the empty space in front of him and wants to grab in the air, to somehow get her back. 'If she would stay, she would die.' he tells himself and he forces himself to turn around and walk back to the Manor. He doesn't look back and he needs to remind himself that the Death Eaters could come barging in any second. He walks faster and he bumps into Snape when he's inside.

They share a look and Snape looks at him apologetically. He must feel guilty, since he was the one who brought Voldemort to the idea to kidnap her.

"S-she was nothing to me. I would feel guilty if she died here because of me. You know, classmates and stuff." The sentences flow out of him more easily than he thought. He can see Snape not believing it and he looks beyond Draco's face. He turns his head as well and sees Tonks and Remus standing behind him.

"They can come any second now." Tonks says stiffly, she must've heard him. Draco nods at this and he can see more members of the Order coming into his house.

The giant bubble around the Manor was breaking and he got himself ready for battle. He would do it for her, he didn't care if he died, he would make this a better world for her.

* * *

><p>"Reducto!" he yells at Dolohov, who flies back into the room.<p>

His own aunt Bellatrix had hit him with quite the nasty spell and he had a big cut on his thigh. It hurt like hell and he had to find a good hiding place and see the damage.

He runs further, passing a few Death Eaters and shooting some spells at them. He runs upstairs and went into the hallway where his room was.

He gasps for air as he sits against the wall, pressing his hand on the wound on his thigh. The blood was simply oozing out of him and he isn't the best with Healing spells. He could hear shouting, cursing and screams of pain everywhere, but he couldn't make himself stand up and fight again.

Suddenly he sees two people fighting downstairs. He tries to shake off his blurry vision and tries to make out who they were.

The blonde hair was hard to miss, his own father.

He hadn't seen him in ages and now he was just there, fighting for a different side than him.

He was trying to make out the second person, probably an Order member. It was a girl, he could see that now, and her hair was made of chestnut curls and quite bushy-

Wait.

No, it couldn't be-

The girl turned around and he could see her wearing a Gryffindor scarf.

Draco shoots up, ignores the pain in his thigh and stalks towards his father.

"CRUCIO!" he screams from the distance and his father lands on his knees in front of him.

Mad-Eye Moody comes up to him, but Draco doesn't want any of it.

"I TOLD YOU TO KEEP HER SAFE, WHAT IS SHE DOING HERE!" he bellows at him.

"Pertificus Totalus!" the girl behind him yells at his father and he turns around.

It isn't Hermione.

He looks between Moody and the girl and he looks at the girl again.

"I-I thought-" he stammers, but a spell is directed at him.

He barely dodges it and sees it's Dolohov again.

Three other Death Eaters circle them as well and he has difficulty with standing upright, his leg almost falling out under him.

"Very brave, Malfoy. Cursing your own father." one of the Death Eaters says, the father of Theodore Nott. Nott shoots a curse at him and he barely has the time to recover when another is shot. The others try to to help him, but soon five other Death Eaters come up to them and Draco is sure they won't survive.

"Pathetic, first saving the mudblood, are you going to save Hufflepuff House at Hogwarts now too?" Zabini's father retorts before he aims a spell Draco simply can't dodge and he flies against a well.

The pain in his back is the last thing he remembers before everything becomes black.

* * *

><p>The pain in his back is also the first thing he notices when he wakes up. With his eyes still closed, he groans. He isn't laying on a cold floor, so that must mean he's not in the Manor anymore. Being able to breath and feel pain must mean that he is still alive. He groggily opens one eye and he lays in a bedroom, definitely not his.<p>

Red curtains, small and warm. The light dimly lit and he opens his other eye to look around the room.

There is a knock on the door and it opens immediately, not asking for permission. It's Tonks with a plate in her hands.

"You're awake." she states as if he didn't know already. "You've been in a coma for 2 days." she says and puts the plate with food on his legs. The leg that had the big cut, was now almost healed.

"You're at my house now, together with Blaise and Theo." she says when he wants to start eating. He drops his fork in shock, not expecting this twist. "Don't worry, they still think you're an ass." Tonks says lightly, but with an undertone as if she thinks that as well.

"What happened-" he tries, but Tonks already finishes for him.

"At the Manor? Terrible. They almost killed you if we didn't Apparate you to my house. We lost Moody though." she says and it's silent for a while.

When Draco didn't say anything, Tonks continued talking. "Mary told me you went quite mad when she was dueling with Lucius Malfoy. What was that about?"

"I mistook her for someone else." he murmurs annoyed. No way that he was gonna tell her that.

"Can I see Granger? I know she-" he starts but Tonks cuts him off.

"No. I overheard you talking to Snape and it's clear you don't feel anything except remorse for her. She has been kidnapped for 6 months, she is probably still traumatized, even though you saved her at the last moment. Let her be, maybe you can speak after the war."

Draco was in a rage on the inside. Who did she think he is?! He would just Apparate to the Burrow by himself.

"And don't try to Apparate to her, we have boundaries. Remus and I decide who is coming in and out." she says as if reading his mind. She leaves the room and he just want to throw the tray with food to the wall. If only he wasn't so hungry...

Even though he couldn't see her yet, it meant she was alive. He had only been three days without her, and he already craved her touch and her smell. Her laugh, the way she talked, the furrow in her brow when she was concentrated or reading a book, the hint of a smile when she was trying to laugh, the full smile she would give him anyway. Yes, it was sure that he misses her.

_All_ of her.


	14. Chapter 14

**(A/N: Hi everyone! I received some questions about Tonks not knowing that Draco loves Hermione and I don't think Draco would want many people to know about them. So only the Weasleys, Kingsley and Snape know. Hope that answers everything. Enjoy this chapter!) **

* * *

><p>She wakes up and she feels the light on her face. For a moment, she thinks it was all a bad dream. When she will open her eyes, she will see the French chandelier hanging in Draco's room, see the balcony doors open and letting in the spring warmth and she will see Draco sleeping beside her.<p>

But the bed feels different, less soft and less silky. She doesn't feel a warmth shift beside her or the familiar sound of his breathing. It doesn't smell like freshly made toast, like it would every morning,

She opens one eye and sighs immediately. It was all real. She immediately wants to close her eyes again and pretend she didn't see all of this and live in her dreams instead. But it was too late for that anyway and she sits up against the headboard.

Molly insisted she took this room, even though it was Ron's. This was the only bedroom that had one bed in it, because so many Order members were going in and out all the time. The room is still full or Ron's stuff and it makes her gulp. His presence is still very noticeable in the room. He was missing for a full 7 months now and nobody had heard anything of him. The thought that he could be dead made her gulp even more and she jumped out of the bed.

Hermione could hear the clattering of pans downstairs and she walked down the stairs in her pajamas.

"Oh! Hermione! You're awake early! Sit, sit. Here are some eggs and here, potatoes, do you want any sausages?" Molly said hurriedly, obviously stressed.

"It's fine, I'm not that hungry." Hermione said and she started eating.

Molly sat down with a sigh and draped the dishcloth over her shoulder. She peeled an egg for herself, and when she wanted to start eating, she lay the egg back on the plate again.

"Ginny is coming home today." Molly said, and Hermione noticed that is why Molly was so stressed.

"Really?" she said shocked, "Why?"

Molly pondered about telling her something, she could see it on her face. She let out a sigh.

"They're going to attack Hogwarts." she choked out and she was on the verge of tears. "I don't want to lose another child." she whispers and she probably thinks Ron is dead as well.

Hermione gets up from her chair and rubs Molly on her back reassuringly.

"She will be okay, and Ron too. I bet he's just hiding in the woods and surviving. The Snatchers don't have him and Dra- Malfoy checked every day in the dungeons if he was there, but he wasn't. He will return, I'm sure of it." she says, only not so sure of herself.

Molly wipes her tears with a handkerchief, "Oh, silly me." she chuckles a bit and she waves away Hermione and motions her to eat her breakfast.

Only then the thoughts of an attack on Hogwarts sink in. Were all the students who are underage coming back? The thought of Death Eaters taking over Hogwarts was pure frightening and she can't help but think again on how save she was at the Manor.

On how he sat next to her, watching the party guests. How she would spend the whole night in his room, talking. He loved her and she didn't even know if he knew that she loved him back.

Her train of thoughts is interrupted by a 'pop' and she turns her head to see who came into the house. The girl who stood there seemed quite familiar, also a bit like her if you narrowed your eyes. When she came closer, she could see it was Mary Witherspoon, a fellow Gryffindor student and one of the youngest Order members.

The sight of her makes her stomach turn, she probably came to report about what happened last night. She drops her fork and wants to get up from her chair, but Molly holds her back.

"Mary!" she exclaims and she gets up herself to hug the girl. "I just made breakfast, you want some?"

Mary waved it off, but sat at the table anyways. "No, Mrs. Weasley, I just came here to report." she says and she looks at Hermione, as if for the first time, and she smiles sadly at her. Did she came here to say that Draco was dead? Did she feel sorry for her?

"We lost one last night," she begins and Hermione closes her eyes. She just knows it's him. She tries to even her breathing and hold back her tears until Mary and Molly are gone, but it's already getting the best of her.

"It was Moody."

Hermione opens her eyes and exhales quite loudly. She can feel Mary and Molly look at her, but they don't say anything and Mary goes on.

"We had a few people who were quite wounded, but we're taking good care of them, they are moved to safe houses."

"Where- Where are they staying?" Hermione tries.

"No idea, those pieces of information don't quite go around, because we have some in hiding, people who fled from the Death Eaters."

Hermione nods and finishes her breakfast. "I'm going upstairs." she announces.

"Wait, Hermione. I need to talk to you privately." Mary says and she follows her up the stairs.

They walk up the stairs quietly and Mary closes the door behind her when they are in Ron's room.

"I know." Mary says softly.

"You know, what?" Hermione retorts, getting quite annoyed. That girl doesn't know anything.

"About you and Malfoy." she says just as softly. Hermione is silent as she looks at Mary.

"Not everything of course, but I was there at Malfoy Manor," she continues, "I was battling Lucius Malfoy when Draco came standing between us, screaming why I was there. Something about keeping me safe. And then he saw who I was, and he stopped. He probably only realized by then that it was me."

Hermione is still silent.

"He thought it was you, Hermione."

Hermione opens and closes her mouth, but doesn't know what to say.

"You know how everyone always says that we look alike? Draco was quite wounded by that hour, he probably only saw my back and my Gryffindor scarf. He panicked at the thought of you being in that battle."

"He made sure I was at The Burrow that night." Hermione says.

"I asked Tonks what happened when you were kidnapped, and she said he was keeping you safe because you were classmates. There were many classmates of him kidnapped to Malfoy Manor and he didn't bat an eye. What really happened, Hermione?"

Hermione blushes a bit and looks at her feet.

"We were lovers, Mary." she says softly and Mary sighs.

"I thought so." she says and sits on the bed.

"That's why he stepped out of the Death Eater gang right? To save you."

Hermione merely nods and she suddenly hears the door opening and Ginny stands there with her suitcase standing next to her.

"Ginny!" Hermione squeals and she jumps up to hug her tightly.

Mary says her goodbyes and promises to visit soon as she leaves the room to let Ginny and Hermione alone.

"Hermione! Merlin, you've changed! I haven't seen you in a year! A year!" she exclaims and she hugs her again.

"Camping with Harry and Ron and then being kidnapped by Malfoy! You know how scared I was?" she huffs and sits on the bed.

"How's Hogwarts?" Hermione asks as she sits next to her red-haired friend.

"There's a reason why I'm coming home. The Order overheard they want to have a battle at Hogwarts. The teachers were terrible, all Death Eaters except McGonnagall, Flitwick, Hagrid and Slughorn. Neville has been beaten a few times, but they don't want to spill pureblood wizards. That's why I am unharmed."

Hermione nods and smiles as she hugs Ginny again.

"I missed you so much." Hermione whispers in Ginny's ear.

"How was Malfoy Manor? Mother wouldn't tell me a thing and said I should ask you. How was Malfoy? I can't believe he's in the Order now! I mean, he saved you! That's some kind of miracle!"

Hermione laughed it off a bit, but Ginny kept looking at her expectantly.

"Well? How was he?"

Hermione pondered about telling Ginny everything, something that she craved. Sure, she told Molly some stuff, but not the sex, the kisses, the details. But would Ginny judge her?

"Do you have time? It's a long story."


End file.
